Continued from last week

“Righteousness” refers to something akin to the ideology of the people using their purest and most unselfish minds. It occurs when the people put their minds and emotions in harmony with the flow of the universe and the intentions of the Good Mind or the Great Creature. The principles of Righteousness demand that all thoughts of prejudice, privilege or superiority be swept away and that recognition be given to the reality that the creation is intended for the benefit of all equally – even the birds and animals, the trees and the insects, as well as the humans. The world does not belong to humans – it is the rightful property of the Great Creator. The gifts and benefits of the world, therefore, belong to all equally. The things which humans need to survive – food, clothing, shelter, protection – these are things to which all are entitled because they are gifts of the Great Creator. Nothing belongs to human beings, not even their labor or their skill, for ambition and ability are also the gifts of the need to survive – even those who do not or cannot work, and no person or people has a right to deprive others of the fruits of those gifts.

“Reason” is perceived to be the power of the human mind to make righteous decisions about complicated issues. The Peacemaker began his teachings based on the principle that human beings were given the gift of the power or Reason in order that they may settle their differences without the use of force. He proposed that in every instance humans should use every effort to counsel about, arbitrate and negotiate their differences, and that force should be resorted to only as a defense against the certain use of force. All men whose minds are healthy can desire peace, he taught, and there is an ability within all human beings, and especially in the young human beings to grasp and hold strongly to the principles of Righteousness. The ability to grasp the principles of Righteousness is a spark within the individual which society must fan and nurture that it may grow. Reason is seen as the skill which humans must be encouraged to acquire in order that the objections of justice may be attained and no one’s rights abused.

Having established the concept of Righteousness and Reason, the Peacemaker went on to discuss the nature of “Power.” The Power to enact a true peace is the product of a unified people on the path of Righteousness and reason – the ability to enact the principles of Peace through education, public opinion and political and when necessary, military unity. The “Power” that the Peacemaker spoke of was intended to enable the followers of the law to call upon warring or quarrelling parties to lay down their arms and to begin peaceful settlement of their disputes. Peace, as the Peacemaker understood it, flourished only in a garden fertilized with absolute and pure justice. It was the product of a spiritually conscious society using its abilities of reason that resulted in a healthy society. The power to enact Peace (which required that people cease abusing one another) was conceived to be both spiritual and political.

But it was power in all those senses of the word – the power of persuasion and reason, the power of the inherent good will of humans, the power of a dedicated and united people, and when all else failed, the power of force.

The principles of law set forth by the Peacemaker sought to establish peaceful society by eliminating the causes of conflict between individuals and between peoples. It was a law which was conceived prior to the appearance of classes and it sought to anticipate and eliminate anything which took the appearances of group or class interest even in the form of clan or tribal interest, especially in the area of property. The law was also based to an impressive degree on a logic which looked to Nature for its rules. It is one of the few examples of a “Natural Law” which is available to modern man. It is a law which clearly precedes “royal” law or “mercantile” law or “bourgeois” property-interest law.

The government which is established under the Great Law provides, in effect, that the leaders or “chiefs” are the servants of the people. Everyone in the Six Nations, wherever the law prevails, has direct participation in the workings of the government. Direct democracy, when it involves tens of thousands of people is a very complex business, and there are many rules about how meetings are conducted, but the primary rule about the flow of power and authority is clear that the power and authority is clearly that the power and authority of the people lies with the people and is transmitted by them through the “chiefs.” The fact that all the people have direct participation in the decision of their governments is the key factor for the success and longevity of the Haudenosaunee.

Continued next week.